Birthday Party Shakedowns

Photo by LexsiesMommyMy daughter's favorite thing, aside from kitties and her Gee (grammy): birthday parties. Fortunately, we've got a lot of them in our future.

We've already been to some pretty creative parties: one was held at a museum, another at a horse farm complete with pony rides, and another at a jumping palace place. These were parties for two-year-olds; I can only guess that they'll become more elaborate as the kids get older.

It's great to be invited, but what happens when the party-thrower starts to charge what amounts to admission?

It seems that some parents are in the practice of holding their kid's birthday party at a really cool place or providing fun entertainment, but expect the guests to pony up cash to attend. For example, they throw a party at a movie theatre, but ask the guests pay for their own tickets, or they have a party at their home, but ask everyone to chip in for the clown.

As the party-holder, I'd only throw my child a birthday party for which I could cover all the costs. As a party-goer, I'd pay for my child's movie ticket or pizza or whatever, simply because I wouldn't want my daughter to miss out on all the fun.

Of course, that means my daughter better not be hanging out with anyone who thinks that having a Madeline-themed tea party in Paris for a three-year-old would be fun -- because that's one party my daughter would have to miss.

What's your take on guests having to "pay their way" at birthday parties? Would you bring your child to a party that charged "admission"? What if you couldn't afford it?